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Advent Meditations: Monday, December 10

Psalm 25, 9, 15 • Isaiah 5:8–12, 18–23 • Luke 21:20–28

Now when these things begin to take place, stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near. (Luke 21:28)

When it looks like the powers and principalities are holding all the cards, stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near. When it looks like the bad guys will win because the heroine has not yet come, stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near. When the light is shining in the darkness but it seems the darkness will overcome the light, stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.

Stand up and raise your head. Throw back your shoulders, stick out your chin and look the darkness in the eye, in whatever form it takes. The light that comes into the world through your eyes is nothing less than the light of Christ. The God who became flesh in Christ is embodied in you. Stand up and raise your head. Redemption is not coming – it is here.

God, fill me with light and confidence to share the good news of your redemption, and help heal the world in your name. Amen.

The Rev. Cathy Boyd is a native Missourian who has now come home to Virginia, where she serves as rector in a wonderful parish in Williamsburg. She is married to David, a retired priest, and mother to two fantastic children, now both grown and off somewhere doing their own thing. The beloved of Seminary of the Southwest hold a strong place in her heart.

The Advent Meditations and Prayers are a gift to our seminary community and are made possible through gifts to our Annual Fund. Seminary of the Southwest appreciates the support of its friends, alumni, and the communities around the world that its graduates serve for the glory of God. This support ensures that Southwest, as an institution made of individuals dedicated to service to God and their fellow members of the body of Christ, can continue doing its part to build the body of Christ.